There He is Again
by SketchGal2
Summary: There he is again. Standing right behind me while I'm typing away codes on my computer. It's almost second nature for me to slowly turn around, while at Allsafe, where we're apparently not all safe, to find him standing behind me. Prequel to "Dinner".


There he is again.

Standing right behind me while I'm typing away codes on my computer.

It's almost second nature for me to slowly turn around, while at Allsafe, where we're apparently not all safe, to find him standing behind me.

He's like a high school computer teacher checking the incoming freshman's internet or computer usage. They do it to make sure they aren't visiting any porn sites, checking their email or buying unnecessary shit on amazon. When they should be learning about phishing scams and how not to give out their wifi passwords to strangers via impromptu youtube clips instead of an actual lecture.

But I digress.

"Elliot," he says, putting his hands in his pockets. He's using that same tone I'm used to hearing him use. It was like he was distracted, but was waiting for me to notice him there. He only 'notices' me when I notice him.

That acknowledgement of someone cut from the same cloth, to another.

He's always in my head in a way.

"Elliot, you will join me for lunch today. I will not take 'no' for an answer," he says, giving a small smirk long after his sentence was finished. He stares down at me, waiting for an answer. His eyes are cobalt steel, digging into me.

 _Jesus_.

He really scares the shit out of me.

His face is contorted into…friendliness?

Would it be appropriate to tell him, 'hello friend?' then?

When I think about it, I really don't have a choice but to join him.

The plus side to this… maybe I can scope out more info on what he's up to. Why he really keeps creeping around here.

Lurking, like I do.

"Sure," is all I can say, as low as my voice would go.

His face doesn't change. At least, I think he looked happy for a second. "First I have to-"

"You do that Elliot," he interrupts, then turns in the direction of one of my coworkers passing by. He smiles at her, Christine, for a minute before looking distractedly at someone or something else behind him.

Maybe he's looking for more people to hack?

The way he's standing over me…it's too close.

He's trying to assert his dominance again.

I can't help but feel it's sad and pretty desperate this time. Can you see it too?

He tries to make it seem as if whether I take my time going along with him won't bother him. But I think it does.

Why is he down here with the Techs again?

Like I said, he has to be desperate.

As Interim CTO, which I'm sure he's still gunning for as a permanent position, he would have more meetings to go to.

Boring meetings. All boredom, no bugs.

But he's bragged about this-being the youngest executive of Evil Corp…

With me at his side-? A tech empire that would put everyone in the world on their knees.

A ruling tech empire worse than Allsafe? Worse than Evil Corp or any other conglomerate combined?

Fsociety probably won't give us a run for our money. That is unless Dark Army gets a grip and joins them…

Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself.

I should be asking myself, why, why was he inviting me to lunch again?

I can only expect the worse. It wouldn't be smart not to expect the worse after what he's told me.

Afterall, this is Tyrell Wellick we're talking about.

I'm almost always on my toes around him. I have to be.

But then again-

No...

Everyone doesn't make me feel like that.

I can feel his eyes turn back on me as I continue packing up. Slipping my hoodie on, throwing my phone and spare pi in my bag before slinging it over my shoulders.

"Your boss," he starts, his breath blowing over my face slightly. I move back a bit, ignoring the steady glare on his face.

"Gideon, he doesn't care," I answer, looking at him briefly before properly turning off my comp.

Gideon prefers that I leave my comp and not work straight through lunch. Both he and Angela and sometimes even Ollie always make a habit of asking me to join them for lunch. I don't think the point of it is so much getting me to leave the building, as it is them getting me to leave my station at least once every eight hours. Well twice, if I have to go the bathroom. If I didn't know any better, I'd say they were trying to hack me while I'm left vulnerable away my station.

But no.

They think me staying cooped up at one spot all day is bad for me. Angela, of course, is the most vocal about it.

Which is why I don't think I'll ever get over the look of shock on their faces when Tyrell and I pass them on the way to the elevator.

"We're going to a similar place as last time. It's not quite the same as the last place. I hope that satisfies you," Tyrell says, putting his hands in his pockets and widening his stance as the door closes. "Nonetheless."

I nod in compliance.

I'm really being treated to lunch again.

What else does he know about me?

He has more patience than I thought he had for me.

The rest of the ride down is quiet between us. He doesn't try attempting small talk this time around. Not that it bothered me the last time he did.

Of course I don't attempt to. I don't feel like I'm being nudged to say anything either.

Before I know it, we arrive at this spacious restaurant downtown.

It looks expensive.

I feel guilt throb in my stomach almost instantly.

This is too much.

"We could just go to the burger place we passed on the way here," I offer, with a small shrug. "It's no big deal."

"It is a big deal and it's my treat Elliot," he confirms, smiling down at me again. "You think I can't afford this? You insult me."

"No-I didn't mean," I try to confirm.

Oh no. I insulted him. Maybe now he'll try to get the Chef to poison my food or something.

Or spike my drink so he could steal my phone and-

"Come, Elliot, our table is waiting," he says, walking forward into the restaurant.

I should've known he has this kind of pull.

And, did you hear him? He already has a table waiting.

~Mr. Robot~

We eat in silence for a few minutes.

It's kind of quiet, yet noisy here. The chairs are comfortable-the people around us

Every so often he tells me about how busy his weekdays have been or he gives me his running commentary on our waiters. He's cruel in stripping down their defenses which makes me believe, and I'm sure you too, that he's been here lots of times before.

"You see, Elliot, I've been here many times before," he says, as he wipes his mouth quickly with a napkin.

He's looked at their source files many times, stored that data, processed it and repeated back to me.

I wonder who else he's told this to.

We've been sitting here for forty minutes and the food on his plate is almost gone.

He has a salad and lamb chop on the side. Medium rare.

I chose the least expensive thing on the menu, a burger with fries. He laughed at me, but nodded in understanding when I ordered it.

"I see you've got your wish," he said, lifting his glass of water to his lips when a fancy burger and fry combo arrived in front of me. He was waiting for his wine to arrive, so he took to watching me.

I felt like I was being rude eating before his food came.

"Not what you expected?" he asked me at the time. He waved his hand towards my food. "Enjoy Elliot."

"It's okay," I mumbled, looking around as I continue chewing.

And here we are.

"You can't escape from me this time Elliot," he says, taking one final bite of his salad. "I know all of the exits and where the bathrooms are." He's smiling.

I think he's joking.

I stare at him just as I crunch on my last french fry.

What does he want with me?

I wipe my mouth with a napkin, pushing my chair back.

"Excuse me, I have to go to the-"

"Restroom? It's over there, behind that obese couple by the pillars," he says, as his face grows serious. He leans in close to me like he wants to share a secret. "They should be in a gym right now instead of stuffing their mouths. I could never live like that. A complete waste."

I get up, walking carefully, but quickly to the bathroom. I try not to feel horrible when my line of vision reaches the couple by the pillars. They look at me in disgust before whispering to each other quietly.

~Mr. Robot~

I look in the mirror to find Tyrell staring back at me after I splash my face with water.

Wellick moves forward, already in my face. He's cornering me to the wall near the mirror…

What does he want with me?

He bends down slightly.

He's an arrogant prick who keeps trying to impress me, like Mr. Robot said.

Oh.

I almost missed the second his lips touch mine.

He does it again, a little longer this time.

His lips are so soft, and cold.

Different from Sha-

"Well, Elliot?" he comments, grabbing my shoulders, which makes me flinch like the last time he did it in a similar bathroom to this one. He rubs them as a big smile, not nearly as empty as the other smiles I've seen him make, stretches on his face.

"Are you alright? I'm sure this has come as a shock to you. But, it doesn't matter. We can do this more, once the shock wears off I guess."

"No thank you," I say, after a moment of silence.

I don't know what came over me, why the hell did I say that?

So I turn my head away, but not before-

His face melts.

He's distraught again.

"I mean-"

What could I say? What does someone say when they-

"No, Elliot," he shushes, sadness in his tone.

We stand there silently as he rests a hand on the wall behind me. His forehead touches mine for a second and his eyes surge through mine like he's waiting for an answer. An answer that he actually agrees with-but I'm not sure if I'm gonna give that to him.

"Can I think about it?" I ask him after a moment.

"I remember the last time you said this. You turned me down then as well."

But this is different. This is isn't him asking me to join him if, no, _when_ he becomes CTO. This is him, married with a wife, coming-on to me in the men's bathroom of a fancy restaurant and asking-

What is he asking me?

"I'm just…just trying not to be rude-" I say, my voice stuttering again.

I don't know what I want.

But I don't-

"You may not realize this Elliot, but you are very funny," he says, his face once jubilant fading into neutrality. He leans in closer to me...if that was even possible. I can feel his breath, hot on my face as I look down. I'm used to this so much now that I don't flinch. "You think I have feelings? What did I tell you before?"

Oh, shit.

 _Shit_.

I knew it.

"You're not human?" I question, sounding like I ran a marathon. Who wouldn't sound this way, in a position like this? What would you do?

Maybe this time I'm right about him being inhuman. Inhuman in the sense that he isn't part of the species of human I'm part of, not the choices he's probably made in the name of his career.

"You still can't tell when I'm joking with you Elliot? How disappointing."

No he isn't.

"Even what I did just now…"

He means the kiss.

"…Was a joke."

He's toying with me again.

I mean, c'mon… I may not kiss many people but-

He wanted me to feel something from that. Why lure me here, alone, again with him?

This is a trap.

This _was_ a trap.

The prospect of more money didn't work on me.

The first time he asked me for lunch, at Steel Mountain, he revealed he knew what I did to Colby.

Now, he's using-

Is he in love with me?

"You continue to be…extraordinary…and I may have to ask you to join me again for lunch. Now, I must go. Take it easy, Elliot."

"But I-"

He kisses me…its even longer this time. His tongue tries to dip between my lips…there's more pressure this time. It seems urgent.

I couldn't tell if it was a kiss farewell, for forever…or see you later but it meant _something_. I just can't tell what.

He's in my head again.

You saw it, right? I'm not just imagining things. I'm not imagining still feeling his lips on mine.

When he pulls away, he doesn't look at me. He instead walks away to leave the bathroom.

"Was that another joke?" I want to call out. I can't though. My breathing seems to have changed-accelerating my heart rate, making my palms sweat and my lips feeling like there's something missing.

And besides, he's gone already.

I fly over to the sink, emptying the contents of afternoon's lunch out into the porcelain.

I feel like I'm in a state of deja-vu…its painful.

I look into the mirror in front of me, duck down and splash cold water on my face.

He's angry-

He has to be upset.

Did he steal my soul? Did I even have a soul before?

Does he have a soul?

I've rejected him so many times now…now this?

He's gonna kill me one day…and not in the way I thought.

I may not know much about him, but he seems like the type of guy to expect everything or anything or _anyone_ at his beck and call.

I wonder what happens when someone doesn't follow that rule?

Do they reset?

Or does he just reset them?

END

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Thanks for reading~


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